Direct Express Auto Transporthttps://www.autotransportdirect.com
This site explains to the visitor the auto transport process, from how to prepare the vehicle to the logistics of shipping it.Mon, 27 Jul 2015 13:45:17 +0000en-UShourly1http://wordpress.org/?v=4.2.3Car Shipping Tips For Marchhttps://www.autotransportdirect.com/car-shipping-tips-for-march/
https://www.autotransportdirect.com/car-shipping-tips-for-march/#commentsSat, 11 Apr 2015 16:21:28 +0000http://www.autotransportdirect.com/?p=21018Car Shipping Tips For March They say March comes in like a lion and out like a lamb. That alludes to the weather. In the car transport industry, however, it is the opposite. March auto transport shipments are in like a&hellip

They say March comes in like a lion and out like a lamb. That alludes to the weather. In the car transport industry, however, it is the opposite. March auto transport shipments are in like a lamb and out like a lion. Well … let’s say a lion cub. At the end March isn’t quite roaring, but it is beginning to stretch for the big event.

Just as the whole of February is a continuation of the end of January, the beginning of March is more of the same. A degree of stable parity is reached whereby for several weeks from the end of January extending well into March, there is no shortage of car shipping carriers to satisfy the customer demand. Our auto transport quote calculator has little variation throughout as auto shipping prices generally hold steady. Well … at least for the first three weeks of March.

Car Transport Hits The Spring Equinox

When the Spring Equinox hits then things start to get interesting in the vehicle transport world. All of a sudden the snow and ice begin to thaw in the northern states, especially New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Michigan, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Missouri, Wisconsin, Minnesota and more. The snowbirds who had shipped a car in December and January to Florida, California, Texas and Arizona, start contemplating their move home. There is a discernible uptick in customer demand for car transport.

Throughout the month of February and most of March, the number of available vehicles, called loads in the automobile transportation industry, remains relatively steady. It is most notable in regard to the state of Florida, where the number of car shipments on the national board from that state is relatively even with those shipping there. That is what we call parity, and auto transport prices reflect that steadiness. It is a calm state of affairs in the auto shipping business and customers typically receive fast service at fair cost. It should be noted that the national board, otherwise known as Central Dispatch, is not available to the general public. It is membership only for auto transport brokers and car shipping carriers. To obtain membership one needs a Department of Transportation Motor Carrier number, and that requires paperwork and fees.

Auto Transport Shipments Gain Momentum

Toward the end of March, the steadiness in car transport shipments shows signs of cracking and there is an increase of roughly 10% in customer auto shipping demand. Prices start to inch up. This is a dangerous time for some inexperienced or otherwise napping auto transport brokers. Adjustments in car shipping prices need to be made, especially if a customer is booking weeks in advance. All of a sudden, car shipping quotes performed in mid-March barely work in late March. And those auto transport quotes executed in late March get obliterated in early April. It is imperative that a car transport broker stay on top of it so that the customer is treated fairly. As a group we have a responsibility to the public who are making personal plans. Too few auto transport brokers take that obligation seriously, and we notice hundreds if not thousands of loads listed on the national board that have no prayer of shipping in a timely fashion. We are proactive when it comes to that and make quick corrections to vehicle shipping prices.

The Original Auto Shipping Quote Calculator

The Direct Express Auto Transport Quote Calculator is the original online. We were virtually alone with that incredible service for a number of years. A cheap unsophisticated software knockoff that barely works became available to scores of other brokers, who suffer reportedly high cancellation rates. The unique and one of a kind Direct Express Car Transport Quote Calculator requires no personal information and weighs several factors that the cookie cutter competitor does not. For that and many other reasons, we are considered one of the very best auto transport brokers in America!

]]>https://www.autotransportdirect.com/car-shipping-tips-for-march/feed/0Car Transport Tips For Februaryhttps://www.autotransportdirect.com/car-transport-tips-february/
https://www.autotransportdirect.com/car-transport-tips-february/#commentsSat, 07 Mar 2015 18:14:47 +0000http://www.autotransportdirect.com/?p=21002Car Transport Tips For February In our blog about car transport tips for January, we noted that toward the end of the month the mad rush to warm weather states such as Florida, California, Texas and Arizona have waned. Most&hellip

In our blog about car transport tips for January, we noted that toward the end of the month the mad rush to warm weather states such as Florida, California, Texas and Arizona have waned. Most everybody finally reached where they were going, some with trials and tribulations, and the auto transport system had equalized by the end of January with shipping prices returning to parity. Most of February is a replica of the end of January. There is no spike in demand for the car shipping industry in February. Customer demand for auto shipping services is mainly a flatline from late January through mid February, with only a modest uptick after President’s Day Weekend that extends to the end of the month. That is good news for vehicle transport customers!

Prices for vehicle shipments mostly hold steady in February as the supply of auto shippers out pace the demand for services. It is generally a good time to ship a car. There is slight downward pressure on auto transport quotes, which our calculator adjusts nicely.

February Car Transports and Old Man Winter

However, there is one important caveat to all that, and Direct Express Auto Transport would be remiss not to address it here. Old Man Winter! Yeah, that guy. Every year he is getting more and more cranky in February. The National Climatic Data Center reports that the changes to global weather is becoming more extreme with devastating consequences. What appears to be small deviations in temperature here and there can actually wreak havoc on the car shipping industry. Snow blizzards become more common and extreme in the upper Midwest and Eastern Seaboard states that serve to stymie auto transport shipments for a period of time. The colder temperatures accompanied by snow, sleet and ice are starting to impede upon the normally warmer Southern states, who are less prepared to deal with it.

Global Warming is a real phenomenon to the car transport business. We see it in action as some North American regions are warmer and others colder. Global Warming is a bit of a misnomer, as it is really Global Climate Change, which is a result of slightly warmer global temperatures that have a boom-a-rang effect on Mother Earth. It is most noticeable in the winter and summer months because those seasons are at the extremes. NASA has a very informative site that explains it nicely. The respected journal Scientific American reports that 97% of scientists recognize Global Climate Change as a fact. Scientists are picky that way in so far as they believe in proven facts. If you see a politician pandering to the naysayers, feel free to regard that as nutty.

The Reality of Global Climate Change on Auto Shipping

Auto shippers know it’s real too because we have to deal with it every year. Global Climate Change is making it more difficult and expensive to ship a car to the colder weather states in February. The number and length of harsh winter storms are more pronounced. Auto shipping quotes and prices to the Rocky Mountains, Great Plains, Midwest, New England and Atlantic Seaboard states are pushed higher to entice more carriers into making a run into more frigid conditions. You gotta make it worth a fella’s while to stick his neck out. Given a choice between a vehicle shipping run in February from Pennsylvania to Arizona or Minnesota, which would you choose? Yeah, us too! So we have to spice up the auto transport quote calculator to states like Minnesota in the middle of the winter. We don’t make the rules, we just live by them.

Direct Express Auto Transport originated the instant online car shipping rates calculator over ten years ago. Others have tried and failed to copy us. They all use the same third rate cookie cutter software that reportedly results in high cancelation rates. We have been told that our auto transport quote calculator is the most accurate and successful. Please give it a try here at the top of this page.

]]>https://www.autotransportdirect.com/car-transport-tips-february/feed/0YELP! Algorithm Does Not Catch Competitor Negative Reviewshttps://www.autotransportdirect.com/yelp-algorithm-not-catch-competitor-negative-reviews/
https://www.autotransportdirect.com/yelp-algorithm-not-catch-competitor-negative-reviews/#commentsMon, 09 Feb 2015 19:43:17 +0000http://www.autotransportdirect.com/?p=20952YELP! Fails To Detect Possible Fraudulent Negative Reviews By Competitors – A Case Example It was brought to our attention that the possibility existed that a competitor may have submitted on YELP! in 2012 a negative review against our company&hellip

It was brought to our attention that the possibility existed that a competitor may have submitted on YELP! in 2012 a negative review against our company and as well three other competitors. We cannot say absolutely that the company in question submitted phony negative reviews, but we can say that YELP’s algorithm certainly failed to detect the obvious appearance of nefarious activity. Simply put, it doesn’t work the way they say it does.

YELP! states on their website: “Yelp uses automated software to recommend the most helpful and reliable reviews for the Yelp community among the millions we get. The software looks at dozens of different signals, including various measures of quality, reliability, and activity on Yelp. The process has nothing to do with whether a business advertises on Yelp or not.” We disagree. Observe below how one company may have targeted four competitors, ourselves included, and that YELP’s algorithm failed to detect, much less stop it.

Meet Div “The Caro” G., who is supposedly a woman. Her favorite movie listed is the 2006 crime drama, “Departed”, which is about an Irish mafia figure and a Boston cop. Forget about When Harry Met Sally, Dirty Dancing or Titanic, this gal likes rough and tumble wise guy movies. You gotta love a girl like that. But of course YELP! cannot ascertain the gender of any user nor their identity, so this gal could just as easily be a guy. YELP! users are anonymous and may hide. The Div profile photo is an animated character, of course, so she could be a he, which would make more sense in regards to the mob movie Departed. Anyway, she-he has a lot to say about car shipping brokers.

The first thing Div “The Caro” G. does upon setting up her brand new YELP! account on February 24, 2012 is enter two restaurant reviews and one glowing 5 Star review for Montway Auto Transport, a broker based in the Chicago area.

February 24, 2012 … Div’s first review:

Well isn’t that just so nice. We didn’t realize there was that much hype, but evidently Div heard all the talk on the street. She almost sounds in love. And it was so considerate of her to remember the Chat feature and gift certificate.

We’re not feeling the love, Div. We are rated 5 Stars on TrustPilot, TransportReviews and Google Plus, each with over 100 reviews and requiring accountability. We answer those reviews. We ignore YELP! because posters are anonymous, and might actually be competitors. Imagine that? We also refuse to give in to extortion and will not advertise with YELP! and judging from their recent stock plunge, more businesses think the same. Our ratings suffer as a result and it hardly matters because 98% of our visitors don’t check them out, as well they shouldn’t. People know not to trust YELP!

We notice Div makes no reference to an order number, vehicle shipped or shipping locations. The only thing we have to go on is the unique name “Div”, and we can find no customer in our records fitting that. It also makes no sense that Div would switch brokers if she was so happy with the other leading brand. People don’t switch if they are happy with their hairstylist, mechanic or broker. Nearly 25% of our business is repeat. YELP! does not detect the unusual activity because their algorithm is not sophisticated enough to do that. This negative review submitted by Div was recommended by YELP! and counted in their manipulated ratings. We do not know whether the author is Div’s first broker reviewed, but YELP! should have detected something highly unusual with the odd sequence of events and failed to do so.

Three weeks later on April 14, 2012, Div “The Caro” G. is back at it and submits another negative 1 star review about a second company, Lepke Auto Transport. She has plenty of venom for the owner:

Ouch. Not nice Div. And likely fabricated. We have never spoken to Lepke but do know he is regarded higher than that. Once again Div makes no reference to an order number, vehicle shipped or shipping locations. That gives Lepke very little information to research the supposed customer order. It makes very little sense that Div would stray once again from her allegedly happy 5 star experience with the first broker. While using grammatically flawed English and poor syntax, Div is critical of others for their English skills. We note that Lepke, like us, is rated 5 stars on transportreviews.com. We do not know whether the author is the first broker, but YELP! should have detected something highly unusual with the odd sequence of events.

Six weeks later on May 25, 2012, Div “The Caro” G. returns to submit another negative 1 star review about a third company, BKK Transport and Brokerage.

Read that first sentence again for BKK … Div realizes she needs to explain why so many reviews about auto transport brokers (the frequency that most people review restaurants), because yeah, it’s getting kind of weird. We will say it again, why does Div keep trying different brokers? YELP! cannot detect an obvious case of potential fraud. We have never spoken to BKK but do know he is regarded higher than that.

And again Div provides no reference to an order number, vehicle shipped or shipping locations, giving BKK nothing concrete to research. While using grammatically flawed English and poor syntax once again, Div is critical of others for their English skills. Usually when a person has not quite mastered the English language, they are more forgiving of others. But not Div. We do not know whether the author is the first broker, but YELP! should have detected something highly unusual with the odd sequence of events.

Eight months later on February 2, 2013, Div “The Caro” G. took her final swing at another auto shipping broker, submitting yet another negative 1 star review about a fourth company, Stateway Auto Transport.

Again Div makes no references to an order number, vehicle shipped or shipping locations, giving Stateway nothing significant to research. She ponders Stateway’s cancellation rate, which is an unusual thing for a customer to write about. We point out for a final time that Div is using a fourth broker after she supposedly was satisfied with her first broker. What normal person does that? We note that Stateway, like us, is rated 5 stars on transportreviews.com. We do not know whether the author is the first broker, but YELP! should have detected something highly unusual with the odd sequence of events.

Soon after the fourth and final negative review against Stateway Auto Transport, Div “The Caro” G. stopped reviewing altogether. There have been no reviews submitted by her (or is it he?) about any business in two years, which after 20 total reviews (5 on auto shippers) in one year, the sudden prolonged silence is noteworthy. The erratic reviewing behavior of Div should be a red flag to YELP. Div’s negative YELP! reviews live on even if Div does not.

CONCLUSION

YELP’s statement, “The software looks at dozens of different signals, including various measures of quality, reliability, and activity on Yelp”, is nonsense. YELP! measures advertising payments and adjusts their ratings accordingly. That’s their algorithm. It is very unusual and suspicious that any reviewer would begin their YELP! tenure rating an auto transport company 5 stars and then go on to hammer four of its competitors with 1 star each. Helloooo! YELP! failed to catch that behavior because they do not really have that capability, or simply don’t care. It actually is in YELP’s best interest not to catch that sort of thing because the victim might pony up to have it removed. Even if the first competitor did not orchestrate the phony negative reviews of those following, the mere appearance of impropriety is readily apparent and enough to hide those offending reviews.

Small business owners run the very real risk of seeing their ratings drop if they do not cave to YELP! Local merchants are especially vulnerable. Do that with a gun and you go to jail. Do that with a website, however, and it’s called “hard bargaining” by the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco (September 2, 2014). When the Godfather said, “I’ll make you an offer you can’t refuse”, it would have been lost on the 9th Circuit that it was a threat. That’s called “hard bargaining” in San Francisco, not a threat. However, YELP! employees count on Main Street America knowing the difference even if the 9th Circuit doesn’t.

YELP! Is Tanking And That Is A Good Thing

YELP! stock is currently getting trashed on Wall Street and has lost over 50% of its value in the last 52 weeks. GOOD! Many small businesses are quick to tell you that YELP! is legalized extortion and a bane on their existence. Indeed, Yelp’s former employees admit on Glassdoor much of that is true. It took awhile, but eventually it has become common knowledge that YELP! reviews are manipulated for profit and consumers should not trust them. If people don’t trust them, then small businesses don’t need to buy third rate advertising they cannot afford and does not work. YELP! sales have recently slowed while costs escalate and profits are squeezed. The trend is decidedly downward. Investors are running for the door.

Direct Express Auto Transport decided a few years ago not to advertise with YELP!, accusing them in writing of extortion. We could afford the luxury of snubbing YELP! because we are successful despite their shady business practices. We are rated 5 Stars on TrustPilot, TransportReviews and Google Plus, each with over 100 reviews. Our company statistics reveal that 98% of our visitors, not just customers, do not visit our YELP! page. We miss the 2% that do saunter over to YELP!, but it is not enough to offset the cost of YELP! advertising. In other words, we would lose more than we gain. Apparently more and more businesses are coming to the same conclusion.

By the way, Direct Express Auto Transport originated the instant online auto transport quote calculator and it is still unmatched in quality and reliability.

Read here YELP’s former employee opinions as viewed on Glassdoor.com

Where do I begin? The pay SUCKS! You think you’re going into the job as an Account Executive- you’re not. You’re starting from the very bottom. It’s all cold calling and the management team drinks and forces the kool aide. There’s absolutely no room for growth. You can work your butt off- yet that doesn’t matter because you can’t hit quota. And you can’t hit quota because you’ve been given horrible opportunities. And you can’t say its your opportunities- they’ll blame you! They tell you to trust the process- it’s a bunch of bologna. The ethics as well is horrible. “We want to help small businesses” no actually we’re hurting them. And I’ll be the first to apologize and take responsibility for a corporation that doesn’t stand behind their mission statement.”

Never in my years have I seen such blatant disregard for the truth. The “algorithm” is flawed and hurting small business nation wide. Told to hush up about “the little people” and that the “algorithm” was not to be changed.
You will be asked to fight “flagged reviews”, in order to leave them on people’s accounts, regardless of truth. I have never seen a business refuse to remove information that is being asked to be removed, either via email or lawsuit.

What yelp stands for is what’s wrong in the world. I’m sorry but a review from years ago should not be relevant, and the fact they can’t upgrade the “algorithm” is BS. I programmed a solution to remove bad reviews after 1 year, and was promptly fired. (Don’t go above and beyond at this job, clearly.)

-Territories are not fair. Most small business owners you’ll be calling have been pitched to at least five times and said no five times in the past few years.
-Digital Plantation. Managers walk around and make sure you’re always on the phone. Unrealistic metrics expectations- 80+ calls, 2.5 hours on the phone, 5 appts and 3 pitches per day.
– Selling product that doesn’t work for lots of businesses- loses people money.
-You’re constantly being sold on how awesome your job is and how lucky you are by management when in reality everyone there is miserable. Feels like brainwashing. Something is just really off about this place.
-Crazy turnover. 50 people are being brought in and leaving every month. They take recent grads who have to move into expensive New York City and rent apartments when they know the chances are most won’t even last a year.
-Commission doesn’t start until you hit a certain number- usually takes over 6 months. Horrible base salary.
-They sell you on room for growth, but very little opportunity.

Advice to Management

Adjust expectations to territories. Lower your metrics expectations. Stop bringing in 50 kids a month and brainwashing them while sending 40 others out the door.”

From the very first day I started I kept my resume posted online and actively networked with recruiters for any opportunities that came alone. Every single one of them told me to remove every reference to Yelp from my resume. Every recruiter had been told by the HR teams they worked with to never forward any resume from anyone who had ever worked for Yelp because of their lack or real business experience, lack of professionalism, and lack of legitimate skills.

Yelp only hires people with very limited or no experience so they have nothing to compare it to. The company has an extremely bad reputation with businesses both big and small. You will not make your goals. It’s a mill that just uses people for sub par wages. It eats them up and spits them out. Ask yourself why they have such massive and perpetual turnover and that says it all. It’s just a bad company. The people that think it’s great are clueless hipsters who are so blindly ignorant that they cannot see for themselves they are working for a failed company. The incompetent are promoted. if you’re over 25, your manager will be younger than you. Extremely unprofessional work environment and absolutely ridiculous management.

Only 20% of the employees in the scottsdale office have been there longer than 6 months.
You will watch all of your friends get fired, and then you will get fired. NO JOB SECURITY.
Even if you are a top performer, they will fire you if you have ONE bad month.
DO NOT TAKE THIS JOB IF YOU DO NOT HAVE INSIDE SALES EXPERIENCE.
The PAY is horrible. You will make just enough to pay rent and bills and be able to hit the bar a few times a week.
The recruiter is lying when they tell you that you will make commission your first year. You have to sell over $100,000 first, then you can make commission.
Small business owners hate that you call them everyday.”

-Every day you worry that you will lose your job
-Compensation is poor and you have to sell 105k before you start earning commission
-Everyone wants to quit after 30 days but doesn’t because they wait to get fired for the severance package
-Management is horrible
-Every month there are 30-50 new sales people and they fire like its no big deal”

]]>https://www.autotransportdirect.com/yelp-algorithm-not-catch-competitor-negative-reviews/feed/0Car Transport Tips For January 2015https://www.autotransportdirect.com/car-transport-tips-january-2015/
https://www.autotransportdirect.com/car-transport-tips-january-2015/#commentsSat, 31 Jan 2015 19:01:05 +0000http://www.autotransportdirect.com/?p=20942Car Transport – What To Expect In January 2015 The Snowbirds Are Coming! The Snowbirds Are Coming! Allow us to play the part of Paul Revere and announce to the auto shipping nation that in January 2015 … the snowbirds&hellip

The Snowbirds Are Coming! The Snowbirds Are Coming!

Allow us to play the part of Paul Revere and announce to the auto shipping nation that in January 2015 … the snowbirds are coming! Pretty safe prediction because it happens every year. For those of you possibly unaware, “snowbirds” are people from the northern states who migrate south in the winter to the warmer states. Most snowbirds are retirees or senior citizens, but not all. Some people simply have the luxury of continuing to work from a warmer location. They come from New England (Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Vermont, Maine, Rhode Island) and the eastern seaboard (New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Connecticut, Maryland, Delaware, D.C., Virginia). The Midwest too (Michigan, Ohio, Illinois, Indiana, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa and Missouri). Some are from the Plain States and Pacific Northwest. Those are the cold weather regions where the winters can be long and harsh. The snowbirds say, “deal me out”.

What States Do Auto Shipping Snowbirds Flock?

Where do snowbirds go? Any place warm, preferably with a beach! Florida, California, Texas and Arizona are the top snowbird destinations. However, there are plenty of vehicle shipping snowbirds flocking to Nevada (Las Vegas), New Mexico, Louisiana, and the Gulf Coast of Alabama and Mississippi too. Florida is undoubtedly number one as it has become synonymous with the word “snowbird”. According to a study conducted by the University of Florida, nearly a million “snowbirds” migrate to Florida for the winter. The numbers increase significantly every year. Some of those folks keep a vehicle in Florida year round just for the winter months that they are there, some don’t need a car very often and forego it altogether, but hundreds of thousands of snowbirds choose to ship a car south for the winter. The same holds true for California, Texas, Arizona and elsewhere. Our innovative and first of its kind auto transport quote calculator provides the most accurate rates in the industry.

What Happens Every January In Car Shipping?

Car Shipping in January is the best of times … and the worst of times. What happens every year is that people start booking their vehicle shipments right around the holidays, Christmas thru New Year’s. The drivers have families too and value their time home just like everybody else. There is a distinct drop in the number of vehicles dispatched and on the road the last ten days of December. But the orders from customers begin to mount, and most prefer the first date available to ship their cars, SUV’s, mini-vans, pickup trucks and more to be just after January 1st.. If they hadn’t already done so, customers call or go online to book their vehicle shipment the first week of January. It becomes an EXPLOSION of vehicles on the central board. Let’s break down January week by week.

First week of January: The number of vehicles waiting to ship nearly doubles! That means orders are 200% of normal capacity. Far more vehicles are waiting to ship than carrier space available. Most are heading to the warmer states. So can you guess the vehicles shipping first and which ones sit and wait? The higher priced vehicles, called “loads” in the auto transport industry, generally will ship first. Money talks. We know that and therefore price our customer vehicles toward the top. Even being in the middle of the pack is a prescription for frustration. Customers of course gravitate to lower prices, but those auto transport brokers have extraordinarily high cancellation rates of upwards 70%, and eventually end up at our website or calling us to get a proper quote. Unfortunately those folks waste time and endure stress not getting it done right the first time, but how could they know? We don’t mess around and our customers get shipped among the first. Our customer reviews speak to that.

The customers who are trying to do an otherwise normal shipment, say from Boston to St. Louis, can find their shipment delayed. Why? The carriers can fill up easily heading to Florida instead, and will hustle back to do it again. So the mad snowbird post holiday rush to Florida and elsewhere warm has a ripple effect across the entire auto shipping industry.

Second week of January: The number of vehicles waiting to ship is at 170% of normal capacity. That means there is still upward pressure on pricing. People cancel their orders with the low-ball brokers and find the reputable auto transport brokers (read Direct Express) to price their vehicle proper for timely shipping. The system still has not flushed out the excess inventory of vehicles, as carriers are racing up and down the I-95 corridor and I-75 to fill up and do it again. And again. And so it goes.

Third week of January: The number of vehicles waiting to ship is at 130% of normal capacity. That means the system is beginning to achieve some semblance of balance. The higher priced vehicles of course move faster, but the middle of the pack average priced cars are now starting to get picked up. The cheaper priced vehicles continue to sit, but by now those brokers have had nervous breakdowns. Maybe their customers too. If you think about it, a snowbird is likely to spend four months in Florida or elsewhere. Going without their vehicle while there the first 3 or 4 weeks is a huge imposition. It’s not the carrier’s fault, they are working harder than anybody and often in harsh conditions. Blame the desperate auto shipping broker who should know better.

Fourth week of January: The number of vehicles waiting to ship is at 100% of normal capacity. That means the auto shipping industry has reached parity or equilibrium. Everything returns to normal. Most reasonably priced vehicles that have well populated originations and destinations will ship in a timely manner. Higher priced vehicles first, but the mid-range vehicles as well a few days later. The really cheap stuff is still likely to wait awhile, the very last to move.

So January starts out crazy and takes all month to right itself. Throw in a winter blizzard or two and things really get wild.

Best Car Transport tip for January … pay more not less. You will be glad you did.

Direct Express Auto Transport originated the instant online car shipping quote calculator. We have the lowest cancellation rate in the industry because our system for pricing vehicles is better than any other cheap knockoff out there. You cannot go wrong choosing Direct Express!

]]>https://www.autotransportdirect.com/car-transport-tips-january-2015/feed/0Car Shipping Tips In October 2014https://www.autotransportdirect.com/car-shipping-tips-in-october-2014/
https://www.autotransportdirect.com/car-shipping-tips-in-october-2014/#commentsTue, 21 Oct 2014 21:16:47 +0000http://www.autotransportdirect.com/?p=20785What To Expect Car shipping in October is easier than most months for the simple reason that less vehicles are being transported across country. By October, the college kids have all made it to their schools and no longer require&hellip

Car shipping in October is easier than most months for the simple reason that less vehicles are being transported across country. By October, the college kids have all made it to their schools and no longer require automobile shipment services. If they haven’t gotten to school, they sure are in trouble with their professors because midterm papers are due right about now! Families relocating in the summer have also already done so. So the demand on truck space wanes as a certain parity envelopes the auto shipping industry. Roughly speaking, there is enough truck space available for the number of cars and trucks needing shipped just about everywhere.

Car Shipping To Florida Starts To Heat Up In October

Not literally as the opposite is true, but figuratively, as the snowbirds start to say goodbye to the Northeast, Midwest and Great Plains states for their migration to warm weather spots such as Arizona, Southern California, Texas, New Mexico and most of all … Florida! Grandma and Grandpa are heading south for the fall and winter and we wish they’d take us with them. It is fairly manageable at first, but then the orders start to stack up heading to Florida, which has 6% of the total US population, but accounts in October for 20% of all vehicle shipments nationwide. And that’s just counting the vehicles heading to Florida, it is higher if the vehicles shipping from Florida are also included. So as our Mexican friends might say, Florida is the big burrito. Car transporters and carriers know only too well that they need to make their money heading to Florida because they might be heading back empty. That begins to drive the market price upward for car shipping to Florida. Sometimes it comes as sticker shock to the customer, who may have shipped another car elsewhere at a similar distance for far less.

For instance, at this very moment there are on the national board almost 50 vehicles waiting to ship from Boston, Massachusetts to Miami, Florida. The highest priced sedan is $900 to the carrier and the lowest $450. The average price is $700 to the carrier (add broker fee for actual total). The vehicles listed at $700 and higher are likely to ship within a week, and the very highest within a couple of days. Those vehicles less than $700 to the carrier are likely to take longer than a week, and some won’t ship at all. Remember this is October 2014 and auto transport prices may be radically different the following October, and most likely will be higher in December and January. So the advice to the customer is not to take the lowest price going to Florida in the fall and winter from the Eastern, Midwestern and Plain States. There are desperate car shipping brokers out there who engage in bait and switch tactics, so don’t bite. Hit the mean and if in a hurry go a little extra to jump ahead of the pack. The Direct Express Auto Transport quote engine, the original online, allows for that quite nicely. Our customers are very satisfied with how we handle shipments and pricing to Florida.

Auto Shipping Advice For The Rest of America in October

The rest of the country has a kind of parity in the market, and car shipments tend to go smoothly. From the Southwest, Northwest and Western states the weather is moderate and vehicle shipments are generally on time. California has 12% of the US population and 13% of total vehicle shipments heading there. Texas is also in balance with 8% of the total population and 9% of the car shipments going there. Same holds true in the South, East, Midwest, Rockies and Plain States. A parity between supply and demand for truck space keeps the car shipping industry in balance. So the disparity that exists in October is a Florida phenomenon and the customer should feel confident that his or her auto shipment is likely to go well with a minimum of stress. If you would like to learn more about the auto transport industry, then please go here. Please remember that Direct Express Auto Transport has a history of providing the most accurate car shipping rates in the industry!

Direct Express Auto Transport implemented for five days TrustPilot’s widget TrustBox Carousel to display on the quote page of our web site. The idea was that at the moment of decision TrustPilot would lend still more assurance to the consumer and increase our conversion rate in the manner of some of their case studies that reported as much as 20% higher. That is a very impressive figure and even if we were able to realize a fraction of that, it would pay for the hefty account membership fee. However, we did not have the same positive experience, instead realizing a nearly 18% decline in conversion rate, and offer an opinion here as to possibly why.

Our five day test compared online car shipping quotes with TrustPilot’s Carousel implemented on the quote page from August 14th to 18th 2014, in comparison to August 7th to 11th when the site did not display TrustPilot’s widget Carousel. There was nothing else changed or different on the car transport quote page during those two five day periods. We chose the August 7th to 11th comparison dates because they lined up exactly with the same days of the week, Thursday thru Monday, as the TrustPilot August 14th to 18th dates. Each five day period had over 1,000 auto shipping quotes or visits to that page, what we consider to be a high enough statistical pool. Conversions declined nearly 18% during those five days.

TrustScore Based On The Bayesian Principle

Our “Average Rating” during the five days was 4.7 and 4.8, which rounded up should equal 5, or so one would think. However, TrustPilot displayed only 4 Stars, as apparently they convert their controversial TrustScore of 8.7 to a star score that equates closer to 4 than 5. The TrustScore is not the same as the Average Rating, which is what most other review sites use, and they apparently ignore it. The TrustScore algorithm is based on the Bayesian Principle, which was “named for Thomas Bayes, an English clergyman and mathematician. Bayesian logic is a branch of logic applied to decision making and inferential statistics that deals with probability inference: using the knowledge of prior events to predict future events. Bayes first proposed his theorem in his 1763 work … . Bayes’ theorem provided, for the first time, a mathematical method that could be used to calculate, given occurrences in prior trials, the likelihood of a target occurrence in future trials. According to Bayesian logic, the only way to quantify a situation with an uncertain outcome is through determining its probability.”

In essence, TrustPilot’s so called TrustScore is not a reflection of the reviewers Average Rating as it is a prediction of the future. It applies greater weight to the most recent or freshest reviews, which in our opinion is a double edged sword. On the one hand, negative reviews in the distant past are mathematically diminished as the fresher more positive reviews are given more weight, which could result in a higher TrustScore than the Average Rating. But on the other hand the reverse is true, a recent negative review will be afforded more mathematical weight, giving the complainer still more pop, and possibly reducing the TrustScore to less than the Average Rating. And it might take considerable time for the effect to taper off. A major assumption is employed with Bayesian logic that is not necessarily true. To wit, that recent events are a better barometer than older events to predict the future. Some might argue the exact opposite, that to be fair the longer history of any company puts into relative perspective any fresh event.

We believe the so called TrustScore of 8.7 that we were assigned, the 4 stars consequently displayed, and choosing not to show our actual TrustPilot Average Rating of 4.8 played a factor in lowering our conversion rate nearly 18% online for those five days. Seems to us folly to advertise anything less than 5 Stars or a 9.0 TrustScore. We submit here that TrustPilot’s use of Bayesian logic superimposes itself on the consumer. Instead of the potential customer viewing the average ratings of a company and basing their own predictions of the future upon what they see and read, TrustPilot’s Bayesian logic attempts to do that thinking for them. We are not at all convinced that 250 years ago Thomas Bayes figured out an accurate mathematical formula for scoring online reviews.

Other Mitigating Factors Possible

Other factors could have played a part, which we readily acknowledge. Perhaps market auto transport pricing changed and we were momentarily not as competitive. We doubt it, but possible. Perhaps it was a statistical anomaly and had we tested for a longer period that the car shipping orders conversion rates might have improved. Indeed, Google Adwords suggests nearly double the period of time for their own customers. However, when you feel in your gut you are losing car transport business for a particular reason, it sure is hard to keep going. Perhaps we chose the wrong display widget or placed it improperly. Could be a design thing, so to speak. But all agreed that the TrustBox Carousel looked handsome on our auto shipping site, so we doubt that too.

We took the TrustPilot Carousel down as we are unconvinced that it helps, and may even hurt sales. When in doubt – punt.

Making Sense Of Thomas Bayes and TrustScore

We are amateurs when it comes to statistics. So take this with a grain of salt. No … a shaker. We don’t see where the recency of positive reviews pushes the TrustScore higher. We only see the mere existence of one negative review pushing it down.

In our opinion, time is not a major factor. In the report of our company reviews below, the oldest review is 36 days old and the newest 1 day old. We say that 36 days makes them all fresh, and that as of today, August 21, 2014, our 4.83 Average Rating should be rounded to a 5 Star Rating. But as of today we have a TrustPilot TrustScore of 8.8, which is barely changed as five fresher reviews of 5 stars have been entered. The fresh 5 star reviews apparently don’t have the same weight or effect on scoring as negative reviews. So is the 4 stars emanating from a TrustScore of 8.8 a reliable indicator of reality, much less probability? We don’t think so.

Let’s break this down by recency since TrustPilot purports to weigh greater the freshest. Remember that at present TrustPilot is reporting our overall TrustScore as 8.8 (equals 4.4) and awards only 4 Stars:

Group 1: Most recent six auto transport reviews (about 20% of total) equaling an Average Rating of 4.83
Five @ 5 Stars
One @ 4 Stars

Group 2: Second most recent six car shipping reviews (about 20% of total) equaling an Average Rating of 4.33
Four @ 5 Stars
One @ 4 Stars
One @ 2 Stars

Group 3: Third most recent six car transport reviews (about 20% of total) equaling an Average Rating of 4.83
Five @ 5 Stars
One @ 4 Stars

Group 4: Fourth most recent six auto shipping reviews (about 20% of total) equaling an Average Rating of 4.50
Four @ 5 Stars
One @ 4 Stars
One @ 3 Stars

Group 5: Fifth most recent six vehicle transport reviews (about 20% of total) equaling an Average Rating of 5.00
Six @ 5 Stars

Group 6: The oldest automobile shipping review, only 36 days old (about 3% of total) equaling an Average Rating of 5.00
One @ 5 Stars

As you can plainly see, of our 31 vehicle shipping reviews: 25 @ 5 Stars, 4 @ 4 Stars, 1 @ 3 Stars, and 1 @ 2 Stars, the overall average rating is 4.83. Currently as of this writing, TrustPilot reports on their website our average rating is 4.9. Yet our TrustScore today is 8.8, equating to 4.4. They show us publicly as a 4 Star company. What gives? Obviously the lone review of 2 stars and the other of 3 stars does not just weigh heavier in the Bayes inspired TrustScore, we say it is somehow exponential and drags the overwhelming majority of positive 5 Star reviews down. We paid thousands of dollars in account membership fees for the pleasure.

Therefore as an automobile transport business owner sensing that the negative review is likely exponential, it is a risk to rely upon the TrustScore system to attract customers.

We like the TrustPilot company organization and their website interface. We think they could be a very good service. However, they need to retire Thomas Bayes and his probability statistical formula in favor of just reporting the facts. As you can hopefully tell, there is nothing malicious in this review of TrustPilot. It is meant to be constructive criticism. We think the TrustPilot sales (Lucia) and customer service (Rachel) staff are top notch, highly professional people. They are talented and hard working. Can’t say enough good things about them. If you are considering TrustPilot for your web site, we hope you find our experience informative as we saw nothing else quite like it upon doing our due diligence.

Update On Conversion Rate Six Months Later

After a few frustrating months of stellar 5 Star reviews and a tortoise like climb to a TrustScore of over 9.0, we gave it another go in January 2015 because TrustPilot began accurately reporting Direct Express Auto Transport as a 5 Star company. They were very late to the party, especially for a paying customer, but they did show up. So we displayed the TrustPilot 5 Star rating on our site and conversions went up nearly 18%. That number 18 keeps popping up. Finally TrustPilot was worth it!

The Lesson Learned

Display on your site a TrustScore of less than 9.0 resulting in 4 Stars or less and watch conversions go down. However, display a TrustScore of over 9.0 resulting in a rounded 5 Stars and watch conversions go up. So for TrustPilot and probably all other review boards … it’s 5 Stars or bust.

]]>https://www.autotransportdirect.com/trustpilot-lower-conversion-rate-test/feed/0Car Shipping Advice For College Studentshttps://www.autotransportdirect.com/car-shipping-advice-for-college-students/
https://www.autotransportdirect.com/car-shipping-advice-for-college-students/#commentsSat, 16 Aug 2014 17:07:30 +0000http://www.autotransportdirect.com/?p=20683Every August we see a spike in college student car shipping. We offer here some good advice on how best to go about it. A big reason that make college student car shipping orders so very different from nearly every&hellip

]]>Every August we see a spike in college student car shipping. We offer here some good advice on how best to go about it. A big reason that make college student car shipping orders so very different from nearly every other type has to do with … emotions … and parents. In the car shipping business there are few guarantees or certainties. It’s not like shipping a package folks. You can’t overnight it. Car shipping is much more involved with plenty of variables.

Actually the college kids are pretty chill about the car shipping process and seem understanding, but their parents are often less so. They love their children and don’t want them inconvenienced in the least. We get it. Fortunately, most universities require freshman to live in dorms on campus and forbid them from having vehicles. The separation anxiety for many parents that freshman year accompanied by also shipping a car to their kid might be toxic for auto shippers. It is only slightly less so for upperclassmen. Like sticking a square peg in a round hole, parents insist on precise performance, guaranties and much more in a car shipping business that is ill equipped to deliver that level of service for anyone. We all would if we could, but we cannot guarantee what we cannot control. Nobody can. We just try our best and hope for the best.

How Best To Schedule The College Student Car Shipment

1. Determine the date the student will arrive on campus and add a day for receiving your vehicle. Who wants to meet a car shipping driver the same day you move into your dorm? Nobody. Too much other stuff going on and why put stress on top of stress? Add a day. Of course, we are assuming that the college student does not want his or her vehicle to beat them to school, because there likely won’t be anybody to receive the car and pay the driver. So an example might look like this:

August 22 – arrive on campus and move in August 23 – first date available to receive vehicle at destination (because we add a day)

2. Determine the distance from point of origin, probably home, to the destination, the university. Let’s say it’s 2,300 miles. As it happens, car shipping drivers are not allowed to drive more than 500 miles in a day, according to DOT rules, which are strictly enforced for everyone’s safety. That means the driver will be at least five days on the road. Therefore, it would be unwise to make your college student’s vehicle available any sooner than five days before it could possibly be received. Therefore, knowing the student cannot receive the vehicle before August 23rd, please make it available on …

August 18 – First date available to ship college student car

3. Having selected August 18th as the first date available only makes good sense because it takes a minimum of five car shipping days transit time, and August 23rd is the earliest receiving date. However, that does not mean the car will ship on August 18th, and there begins the problem for college students and notably their parents. There has to be several other vehicles also shipping within close proximity of both the origin and destination. It does not happen every day. It usually does happen within one week if both the origination and destination are well populated areas. If either is in a remote spot, it can slow things down considerably as there is less truck traffic. Even in ideal circumstances, it means that most likely the college student will be without a vehicle for a few days and perhaps over a week. For a car shipping company, tell that to a parent … then duck for cover.

Nobody can control the car shipping dates with any sort of precision. At the time the order is placed, it is unknown which carrier will be shipping your college student’s vehicle, or whether it will be assigned a driver on the first day available … or third day … or fifth day … and so on. All we know are the probabilities, and there’s no guaranties on probabilities. Well, alright, in Vegas they can guarantee that the house will win 90% of the time, but for the rest of us probabilities are not guarantees.

Can A College Student Increase The Probable Chances Of Car Shipping Success?

Yes they can. Direct Express Auto Transport offers three car shipping rate levels: Standard, Expedited and Rush. The first one, Standard Rate, is plenty fine for most people as their vehicles get assigned a carrier between 1 and 7 days of availability over 80% of the time. It offers the best deal on car shipping, especially for those on a budget, and most people are fine waiting a few extra days. A high percentage actually ship within a couple days and do so at that lower rate. But by selecting the Expedited Rate, which the car shipping quote calculator adds $75, the probability of success increases to 85% and the number of days reduced to 1 to 4. What that does is scoot your Expedited order in front of the other market rate vehicles, and maybe a driver chooses your vehicle over another. Or maybe he drives a little out of his way to fetch or deliver your college student’s car. That extra $75 is often well spent if a parent is stressing over car shipping. It’s like front cutting at the water cooler without the guilt. And then of course there are some people who just don’t want to mess around and go Full Monty, selecting the Rush Rate, which is $150 more than the Standard Rate. If there is a carrier anywhere in the vicinity of the origination and heading anywhere near the destination, that extra $150 is enough to … in the words of Van Halen … go ahead and JUMP! The odds of success increase to 90% and the days to assign a driver reduced to an astounding 1-2 days. None of it guaranteed, of course, but the probability is exceptionally high.

Final Words of Advice To Parents of Car Shipping College Students

Most university campuses have an efficient mass transit system and most college kids are fine with it. They often meet and make friends in the process. So until your college student’s vehicle arrives, hopefully he or she can make the best of it. Sometimes life’s little inconveniences can be blessings in disguise. You know, Paul McCartney introduced John Lennon to George Harrison on a bus. That seemed to work out fine. The kids make do and learn to fend for themselves. You love your kid, we understand, but take a deep breath and know that it will all work out in the end. Want to see our Standard, Expedited and Rush rates? Please use our car shipping quote calculator on this page. You can also learn more about the car shipping industry by going here.

]]>https://www.autotransportdirect.com/car-shipping-advice-for-college-students/feed/0What Are Seasonal Fluctuations In Auto Transport?https://www.autotransportdirect.com/seasonal-fluctuations-auto-transport/
https://www.autotransportdirect.com/seasonal-fluctuations-auto-transport/#commentsFri, 28 Feb 2014 17:01:46 +0000http://www.autotransportdirect.com/?p=20471Just exactly what is meant by the phrase "seasonal fluctuations in auto transport"? Everybody talks about it but hardly anybody explains it. The auto shipping business just assumes that the phrase is self explanatory, and to a degree it is. Obviously, as the seasons change there are ebbs and flows in the car transport industry that change with it. But what does that really mean for the customer? How does that play out in real life? And why should a customer give it any concern? Here on this page we will attempt to answer those questions, because inquiring minds want to know.

]]>Just exactly what is meant by the phrase “seasonal fluctuations in auto transport”? Everybody talks about it but hardly anybody explains it. The auto shipping business just assumes that the phrase is self explanatory, and to a degree it is. Obviously, as the seasons change there are ebbs and flows in the car transport industry that change with it. But what does that really mean for the customer? How does that play out in real life? And why should a customer give it any concern? Here on this page we will attempt to answer those questions.

January’s Major Auto Transport Headache

Let’s start at the beginning, shall we? January. It’s a new year. The holidays are over and everybody gets back to the regular grind. In the auto transport business, the first week of January is met with some trepidation. The truck drivers and carriers are just like everybody else and want to be home for the holidays. That means that for over a week they were not on the road, fewer cars were shipped, but shipment orders continued to get booked. A backlog of too much supply (vehicles waiting to ship), is met with a static and insufficient number of trucks available to ship them. Retirees called snowbirds are ready by the tens of thousands to ship their cars to warm weather states such as Florida, Texas, Arizona and Southern California. The highest priced freight, called loads, ship first. The smarter auto transport brokers steer their customers to a higher price, explaining that it is in the customer best interest, which most rational people understand. The rookie or simply inept auto transport companies book more orders at the cheaper prices without explaining that those orders will likely ship last, sometimes weeks after they were made available. For reasons we will never understand, those cheap brokers are willing to listen to screaming customers who rightfully want to know why their car is still sitting in Poughkeepsie while they’ve been in Boca Raton for 3 weeks? Many waste precious time with those fumblin’ bumblin’ stumblin’ brokers before canceling their order and going with a more reputable firm … like us! The frigid weather and snowstorms in many parts of the country may also throw a monkey wrench into everyone’s plans. It usually takes 2 or 3 weeks in January to flush out the backlog and return to equilibrium.

February and March’s Lull In Car Shipping

Perhaps one of the slowest months of the year in the car shipping industry is February. Grandma and Grandpa have already made it south. It’s too flipping cold to buy a car on the internet and ship it home. The college kids are at school. Companies don’t relocate employees in the middle of a school year. Yeah, February is slow and after that it is slow some more. It is also a month in which rookie auto transport brokers, or the clueless, get caught with outdated pricing. The difference heading to Florida in January might be $2-300 higher than the reverse. If a broker doesn’t adjust his pricing in February, then some people will book orders for March or April ship dates that have completely bogus pricing which hasn’t a prayer of shipping. Experience and business ethics are very important in the auto transport business.

Toward the end of March the weather is getting better and some snowbirds start to make their way north. The pricing in January should be reversed in March in the warm weather states, with cheaper auto shipping rates heading to Florida, etc. and higher prices shipping from there. People start buying cars again online and business activity picks up. If you think the cost to ship your car is too low in Florida in March, it probably is. For the next 3 months there is no such thing as a good deal. Our recommendation is don’t stress yourself out trying to save $100, because it can cost you more than that in the effort.

April and May Pick Up Again In Car Transports

Spring is in the air. The baseball season begins. The snowbirds are really ramped up again to come home by the tens of thousands. It now becomes really cheap and fast shipping to Florida, Texas, Arizona and Southern California. But it gets far more expensive shipping out of there. And slower because there are more vehicles waiting to ship than space available. It is the reverse of January. This is what we mean by “seasonal fluctuations in auto transport”. Got a cheap price shipping from Florida in May? You’re probably going to wait a long time. Is it worth it? Probably not. Just add an extra $100 (maybe more) and get it done faster.

The Summer Months of June, July and August Are Peak Season

The hot weather months of summer are peak season for auto shipping companies. Companies are relocating employees because the kids are out of school, making the transition easier on families. Those people will drive one car and ship the other. College kids shipped their cars home in late May and June, and do the reverse in August and early September. People have more confidence buying cars online in the summer. The vehicle shipping estimates are somewhat elevated in the summer because of overall heightened demand, but are generally not too onerous. Usually there does not exist a disparity in pricing based upon direction. The car shipping industry is brisk and on an even keel. Except for one hiccup. The 4th of July! Just like at at Christmas, truck drivers and carriers want to be home like everybody else, sipping a cold one and flipping hamburgers. It’s the American thing to do. Ah, but that means another backlog develops and cars don’t ship as fast. Higher priced freight goes first, which is the way Adam Smith predicted it. And just like in January, it will take 2 or 3 weeks for equilibrium to return. Again, that’s what we mean by “seasonal fluctuations in auto transport”.

The Autumn Months of September, October and November Slow Down

The fall months of September, October and November are good times to ship your car. The weather is still mild and the number of car transport shipments are down from the summer, which means faster service and slightly lower car shipping rates. Sometimes the seasonal fluctuations mean a good thing for customers. There is a flurry of college students shipping in September, but all in all there isn’t the mad rush in the fall that there is in the summer. Things slow down for a few days Thanksgiving week, but pick right back up the week after. You should enjoy good prices and faster service in autumn.

December Is Trouble For Auto Shipping

Our so-called “seasonal fluctuations” begin to kick in again in December. Auto shipments are steady and fine just after Thanksgiving and into early and mid-December. However, once the auto transport industry hit Christmas week and New Year’s Eve, vehicle shipments slow to a crawl. Yet the orders keep piling up. The snowbirds are getting ready to fly south. It is perhaps the worst time of year! People get emotional around the holidays. They don’t want to hear any excuses, are disappointed if a grand Christmas present doesn’t arrive in time, and are often times stressed. There isn’t much any auto transport broker can do about it. They don’t drive the trucks and can’t get a carrier to skip the turkey dinner and mom’s apple pie to get on the road to deliver that customer car. It is frustrating for everybody. Sometimes even adding more money to lure a driver will not work, because if nobody is on the road … then nobody is on the road. When we talk about “seasonal fluctuations in auto transport”, it is the last ten days of December and first ten days of January that we are most thinking about. Those are the three most stressful weeks in the year for auto transporters. Expect to pay more and get less. Doesn’t seem right, does it? The best thing to do is think ahead by having a backup plan in case your shipment does not go the way you envision. Ship in early December before the rush, or pay more during the rush, or wait until things calm down in mid-January after the rush.

The Direct Express Auto Transport Quotes Calculator

So there you have it in a nutshell. Seasonal fluctuations in auto transport. There are many more scenarios here and there through the course of the year, but we touched on the major ones. Our auto transport quotes calculator tries to account for all the seasonal fluctuations. Our ten years experience in the car shipping industry gives us a leg up on the competition. This page was created to help the customer know how to avoid certain seasonal fluctuations, and maybe even take advantage. We hope you enjoyed reading this blog post, and if you did please don’t forget to like us on our Google + Plus, Facebook or LinkedIn pages. To learn more about the auto shipping industry please go here.

]]>https://www.autotransportdirect.com/seasonal-fluctuations-auto-transport/feed/0Interstate Truck Driver’s Guide to Hours of Servicehttps://www.autotransportdirect.com/interstate-truck-drivers-guide-to-hours-of-service/
https://www.autotransportdirect.com/interstate-truck-drivers-guide-to-hours-of-service/#commentsFri, 07 Feb 2014 02:06:41 +0000http://www.autotransportdirect.com/?p=20327The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, otherwise known in the auto transport industry as FMCSA, has strict guidelines to the number of hours a truck driver may operate on the road. For their protection and the public, they are not&hellip

]]>The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, otherwise known in the auto transport industry as FMCSA, has strict guidelines to the number of hours a truck driver may operate on the road. For their protection and the public, they are not free to do whatever they want. The FMCSA put it very succinctly and nicely:

“As the driver of a large, heavy truck, you have a lot of responsibility as you
drive down the road. The biggest concern is safety. That brings us to the
main reason for the hours-of-service regulations — to keep fatigued drivers
off the public roadways. These regulations put limits in place for when and
how long you may drive, with the idea that these limits will help make sure
that you stay awake and alert while driving” (1).

Auto Transport Trucks That Are Susceptible To FMCSA Rules

Basically if a truck is over 10,000 pounds and hauling commercial loads interstate, it is subject to the Unites States Department of Transportation rules and regulations. If a truck only operates within one state, it is considered intrastate and does not need to comply with federal government regulations. However, most car shipments do cross state lines and therefore the truck driver is subject to interstate rules.

What Are The Basic Hours of Service Guideline Limits?

There are three main rules that make sense to everyone. And then come the lawyers to parse it this way and that, exceptions for this rule and that, and parsing of the parsing of exceptions to exceptions. Yeah, in the end you need a scorecard because nobody reads Shakespeare anymore (look up his advice regarding lawyers) and there’s enough wiggle room to get out of almost every situation. Be that as it may, here are the three main rules that the FMCSA spelled out clearly as quoted from the FMCSA Interstate Truck Driver’s Guide to Hours of Service:

Rule #1 – The 14 Hour Duty Limit

“This limit is usually thought of as a “daily” limit even though it is not based on a 24-hour period. You are allowed a period of 14 consecutive hours of duty time after being off duty for 10 or more consecutive hours. The 14-consecutive-hour duty period begins when you start any kind of work. Once you have reached the end of this 14-consecutive-hour period, you cannot drive again until you have been off duty for another 10 consecutive hours.

Your driving is limited to the 14-consecutive-hour duty period even if you take some off-duty time, such as a lunch break or a nap, during those 14 hours.

Example: You have had 10 continuous hours off and you come to work at 6:00 a.m. in the morn­ing. You must not drive your truck after 8:00 p.m. that evening. You may do other work after 8:00 p.m., but you cannot do any more driving until you have taken another 10 consecutive hours off.”

This regulation is found in Section 395.3(a)(2).

Rule #2 – The 11 Hour Driving Limit

“During the 14-consecutive-hour duty period explained above, you are only allowed to drive your truck for up to 11 total hours. There is no limit on how many of those hours you are allowed to drive at one time — you may drive for as little as a few minutes or as much as 11 hours in a row. Once you have driven a total of 11 hours, you have reached the driving limit and must be off duty for another 10 consec­utive hours before driving your truck again.

Example: You have had 10 consecutive hours off. You come to work at 6:00 a.m. in the morning and drive from 7:00 a.m. until 6:00 p.m., you must not drive again until you have at least 10 consecutive hours off. You may do other work after 6:00 p.m., but you cannot do any more driving of a commercial motor vehicle.”

This regulation is found in Section 395.3(a)(1).

Rule #3 – The 60/70 Hour Duty Limit

“In addition to the first two limits, which are explained above, is the 60/70-hour limit. This limit is based on a 7-day or 8-day period, starting at the time specified by your motor carrier for the start of a 24-hour period. This limit is sometimes thought of as a “weekly” limit.

However, this limit is not based on a “set” week, such as Sunday through Saturday. The limit is based on a “rolling” or “floating” 7-day or 8-day period. The oldest day’s hours drop off at the end of each day when you calculate the total on-duty time for the past 7 or 8 days. For example, if you operate on a 70-hour/8-day schedule, the current day would be the newest day of your 8-day period and the hours you worked nine days ago would drop out of the calculation.

• If your company does not operate vehicles every day of the week, you are not allowed to drive after you’ve been on duty 60 hours during any 7 consecutive days. Once you reach the 60-hour limit, you will not be able to drive again until you have dropped below 60 hours for a 7-consecutive-day period. You may do other work, but you cannot do any more driving until you are off duty enough days to get below the limit. Any other hours you work, whether they are for a motor carrier or someone else, must be added to the total.

• If your company does operate vehicles every day of the week, your employer may assign you to the 70-hour/8-day schedule. This means that you are not allowed to drive after you’ve been on duty 70 hours in any 8 consecutive days. Once you reach the 70-hour limit, you will not be able to drive again until you have dropped below 70 hours for an 8­consecutive day period. You may do other work, but you cannot do any more driving until you get below the limit. Any other hours you work, whether they are for a motor carrier or someone else, must be added to the total.

34-Hour Restart
The regulations allow you to “restart” your 60 or 70-hour clock calculations after having at least 34 consecutive hours off duty. In other words, after you have taken at least 34 hours off duty in a row, you have the full 60 or 70 hours available again. You would then begin counting hours on the day of the restart and not go back the full 7 or 8 days.

Example: If you follow the 70-hour/8-day limit and work 14 hours for 5 days in a row, you will have been on duty for 70 hours. You would not be able drive again until you drop below 70 hours worked in an 8-day period. However, if your company allows you to use the 34-hour restart provision, you would have driving time available immediately after 34 consecutive hours off duty. You would then begin a new period of 8 consecutive days and have 70 hours available.”

This regulation is found in Section 395.3(b) and (c).

Direct Express Auto Transport’s 4 Suggestions

The FMCSA has tried with their 3 basic rules to protect truck drivers from themselves. Time is money and auto transport truck drivers are by nature hard working people who will push themselves to make a buck to feed their families. It is extremely grueling and hard work that they are doing. Don’t think so? Try driving your cushy sedan 500 miles in a day and you will be stiff when done, your back sore and your brain weary. Sleep it off and get up and do it again. And again. Don’t stop there, gotta get to Baltimore, so do it yet again. Brothers and sisters it’s hard. So the FMCSA set rules that protects auto transport truck drivers from themselves and maybe the bosses who otherwise might push them too far.

The FMCSA rules obviously protect the general public as well. Here are Direct Express Auto Transport’s 4 tips on how to treat a car transport truck driver upon delivering your vehicle:

1. Be punctual even if the driver is not. He has several customers to meet and any one of them may throw his schedule off by showing up late or unprepared, i.e. failing to have cash or money order to pay the balance. The driver will really appreciate your understanding of the pressures on his time. And he does feel bad if you are inconvenienced.

2. Smile and be kind please. That auto transport driver just performed a service for you and chances are he or she just had a rougher day than you. Honey works better than vinegar. A smile goes a long way.

3. Of course he or she is being paid for a service, but would it kill you to say thank you. There is dignity in work and when somebody does a job, it’s not all about the money. It is also respect for a job well done. Saying thank you is really appreciated.

4. You know, a waiter or waitress gets tipped for hustling tables and providing good service, and they deserve it. Don’t you think that a auto transport driver who just took good care of your car for several hundred miles, maybe thousands, deserves a little extra too? You don’t have to do that, but c’mon buddy, be cool about it and show a little extra green. It’s good Kharma and what goes around, comes around.

]]>https://www.autotransportdirect.com/interstate-truck-drivers-guide-to-hours-of-service/feed/0The Big Chill For Auto Shippershttps://www.autotransportdirect.com/the-big-chill-for-auto-shippers/
https://www.autotransportdirect.com/the-big-chill-for-auto-shippers/#commentsThu, 30 Jan 2014 21:14:03 +0000http://www.autotransportdirect.com/?p=15344The recent bitter cold snap blasting down from the North Pole, or what scientifically is known as the polar vortex, reached deep into the lower 48 United States causing enormous difficulty for auto transport carriers. Everything about it is unusual&hellip

The recent bitter cold snap blasting down from the North Pole, or what scientifically is known as the polar vortex, reached deep into the lower 48 United States causing enormous difficulty for auto transport carriers. Everything about it is unusual as it appears we are witnessing the harsher side of Global Climate Change. Subzero temperatures and snowstorms have pelted the Plains, Midwest, New England and Atlantic Seaboard. But the reach has not stopped there as now the Southern states are getting hit hard too.

There have been many delays for the “snowbirds” wanting to ship their vehicles south to the usually warmer weather states of Florida, Texas, Arizona and southern California. The number of cars waiting to ship have log jammed the transportation system, as many carriers have little other choice but to park their trucks and wait out one storm wave after another. Customers get frustrated along with the truck drivers. The former are anxious to receive their vehicles as they have already flown to the destination, and they only plan to be there about 4 or 5 months. The latter are missing out on income derived from delivering those vehicles. You don’t work – you don’t get paid. It’s as simple as that.

Why Do Carriers Avoid Freezing Temperatures & Blizzards?

The answer might seem obvious but to many customers it is not, as they still expect their cars to be picked up and on its way in a timely fashion. In freezing temperatures, especially subzero, the oil in a truck engine gets thick and the performance suffers greatly. Nothing works as smooth as it should. The transmission, differential, steering and transfer case all move slower through the crankcase and the truck engine will lose power. And if the brake pads freeze or crack, well does anybody want to watch what happens next on a slippery road? As well, for an auto carrier who absolutely depends on the hydraulics performing to get vehicles on and off, that becomes quite an issue if the hydraulics freeze.

Insurance becomes an issue for a car shipping carrier in freezing weather or snowstorms, because the odds of an accident go way up. The truck driver is responsible for the safe transport of 8-10 vehicles, and the cumulative value is bound to be hundreds of thousands of dollars. It is risky then to be transporting freight of that value on an icy or snowy road. The smart thing to do is wait it out.

Fortunately most people are understanding of the logistical problems facing truck drivers in frigid or blizzard conditions. What has been unusual in 2014 is the length, breadth and severity of the harsh winter. Eventually the ice and snow will thaw and those hard working guys and gals will be back on the road.